DLM Newsletter July 2024

I recently began a home Bible study with Dora and her family who live just a two to three minute walk from the ministry's main gate. I met Dora at the borehole some months back while I was there helping the children pump water each afternoon. This has been so rewarding! The first Bible study we had, we talked about Noah's ark. They shaded (colored) some coloring pages and then enjoyed a snack.

Monday, July 1, 2024

Today, I took the crayons and coloring sheets for the home Bible study group to shade. The children love shading! Shading is a special treat because most children do not have access to crayons or coloring sheets even at school. I will print a coloring sheet on my small home printer and will then send the building foreman to a local print shop to make copies for me.

Tuesday, July 2, 2024

I took a Bible story book written in Luganda to Dora's house. Her jajja (grandfather) also enjoyed reading it.

Mission Team July 11 - 23, 2024

Delight in the Lord Ministries recently hosted a mission team from Pine Grove Baptist Church. The team included three ladies who were here in Uganda for 10 days helping me with community outreach and much more. 

Mission Team: COMMUNITY OUTREACH and HOME BIBLE STUDY

The team and I visited with Dora and her family on several occasions. One day I led the Bible Study using a craft that the team brought as an activity for the children. The craft was a salvation key chain using colorful beads to share the gospel!

Mission Team: VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL DAYS

The mission team from Pine Grove Baptist Church brought lessons and crafts from their 2024 Vacation Bible School curriculum called The Great Jungle Journey by Answers in Genesis. We held our own weekend VBS at Jeholand, the school where our primary sponsor children attend. It’s located in Kabowa which is within the capital of Kampala. We had an average of 55 children from the age of four to 16. Of this group, 23 were our DLM sponsor children. The team taught the lessons, led in singing songs, and even had craft activities. The children loved doing the crafts and learning new songs, as well as learning about the seven C’s of history: creation, corruption, catastrophe, confusion, Christ, cross, and consummation/completion. What a blessing to be able to host VBS for 3 days while the team was here in Uganda.

Mission Team: COMMUNITY OUTREACH IN THE VILLAGE

Back in June, I received permission to do outreach with one of the local government schools near my house. Brian and I have had a couple of meetings with the school officials and upper level government officials to get this approval. Because of this, the recent mission team was able to do outreach right here in the village where I live. The team and I served the school’s porridge to the kids for lunch. The mission team brought three balls and several jump ropes for the children and played with them during their lunch break and even taught the children hand clap games. On their last day, we stopped by the school and visited with the children and staff during their morning break. What a great outreach opportunity that God has provided for me and DLM.

Saturday, July 27, 2024

I hosted another Bible study lesson with the some of the community kids at Dora's house. There were eight kids in attendance, and they were are all cousins. We read a Bible storybook about Deborah and talked about the time of the various judges. 

Sunday, July 28, 2024

I journeyed to Kampala for church and Bible study with the boarding children at Jeholand. I picked up Mama Fab and one of our sponsored boys to go to church. In Bible study, we continued reading in the book of Acts. Of course, they insisted on playing bingo for a few rounds and then sang some songs before having their snack. 

I’m so blessed by the opportunities I have to share God’s Word and to grow in the Truth with these kids in Kabowa and in the village! Glory to God alone!

Construction of the Kitchen/Cafeteria and Visitors' Building

During July, the construction team finished plastering the inside and outside walls of the kitchen/cafeteria and the visitors' building. They built a partial wall on one side of the kitchen/cafeteria because it is so far off the ground which makes it a safety hazard. The team has completed the stonework at the bottom of the visitors' building and is now working to complete the stonework on the kitchen/cafeteria. The next step is to build a narrow one foot verandah around the sides of the buildings which will keep water away from eroding the foundation. The kitchen will need good ventilation to allow the smoke to exit the area, so we will be using bricks to design a wall with plenty of openings to allow for good ventilation. One of the final touches is painting the exterior; however, we will not complete this phase at this time. If we paint the buildings now, we will need to repaint them after all of the school buildings are complete and the school is ready for opening. So, to be resourceful and save money, we won't paint the buildings now.

We are so excited about the progress and are so thankful for our supporters! Our 2024 Building Goal is $34,000 to complete these two buildings. We are so thankful for the $19,478.70 that has been given to the campaign at this time. We trust that God will provide the remaining $14,521.30 so we can complete the buildings this year.

Construction of the Chapel

Our boarding school plans include a chapel for the children, teachers, and staff. Once the school is built and in operation, DLM's Trinity Chapel will be used for daily chapel time and Sunday services for our primary boarding children, teachers and staff. For the first 10-12 years of my life, I attended Trinity Baptist Church in Nevils, Georgia, where I learned so much through Awana, Sunday School lessons and Biblically sound sermons. I am so excited to have Trinity Baptist as the building sponsor for DLM's Trinity Chapel. We are so thankful for them! Check out the progress.

July 3, 2024 marks the date when we first staked out the chapel, and then, work began soon after. 

Wednesday, July 31, 2024

Remembering one of our Sponsored Children - Sharif

On Wednesday morning, I received a call at 5:30 am from a parent informing me that one of our sponsored children passed away suddenly and unexpectedly. Sharif had sickle cell anemia and had been taking daily medication to give him a better life and to prolong his life. He recently was diagnosed with a bacterial infection and was currently in a "crisis", a time of extreme joint pain for sicklers. He passed away at his home with his father. Autopsies aren't very common here, so we don't know the exact cause of death. However, it sounds like it could have been a blood clot considering his condition and the suddenness of his passing. It is hard to believe and doesn't seem real. He and his family are Muslims. His mother is working overseas but had recently been in Uganda visiting with her family. Sadly, she wasn't able to come home for the burial. Please keep the family in your prayers and that God will use this situation to draw them to Himself and save them.